Clemson has power, Alabama has Dugas, otherwise flip a coin between Tigers and Tide

Alabama's Taylor Dugas (1) squares up to bunt during a regular-season game against Auburn at Sewell-Thomas Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The sophomore center fielder and leadoff hitter leads Alabama with a .393 batting average and a .530 on-base percentage. (The Birmingham News / Hal Yeager)

CLEMSON, S.C. -- On the eve of the Clemson Super Regional of college base­ball's NCAA Tournament -- actually on a broiling afternoon at Doug Kingsmore Sta­dium -- one coach summed up his team's season.

"We were playing very good at the begin­ning of the season. Then we hit a lull in the middle of the season. We tried to keep our team together and keep our head in the game."

And that was Alabama coach Mitch Gas­pard?

No. It was Clemson coach Jack Leggett.

This was Gaspard:

"Our two years have mirrored one another in a lot of ways," he said. "Both teams have really played well as of late."

The first game of a best-of-three series to determine a berth in the College World Series starts at 5 p.m. CDT today.

"You look at the batting averages -- pretty similar," Gaspard said. "You look at the ERAs -- real similar. Normally that's going to tell you it's a pretty even matchup, both on the mound and offensively."

"It comes down to who can deliver a big two-out hit or who can have a hot pitcher this weekend," Gaspard said. "That's what a Super Regional should be like."

Actually, they really did flip a coin Friday. Clemson won, making it the home team tonight on its home field. Alabama will be the home team for a 6 p.m. CDT game Sunday. If a third game is necessary at noon or 6 p.m. CDT Monday, Alabama also will be the home team.

How similar are these two teams? Alabama's record is 41-23. Clemson is 41-22. Alabama got off to a 16-1 start. Clemson won 17 of its first 19 games. Alabama lost 14 of 20 games at midseason. Clemson lost nine of 12. Alabama's team batting average is .298. Clemson's is .306. Alabama's ERA is 4.81. Clemson's is 4.82. Opponents are batting .281 against both teams.

But there are some differences between the two teams. Clemson hits for power (87 home runs). Kyle Parker (.356 batting average, 20 HR, 63 RBIs), a first-round draft choice of the Colorado Rockies on Monday and the football team's starting quarterback, is the cleanup hitter.

Alabama (62 home runs) is known more for bunts (50 sacrifices to Clemson's 19) and a hit-and- run style. Leadoff hitter Taylor Dugas (.393 batting average, .530 on-base percentage) sparks the Tide's offense.

"I like the swing-for-the-fences type better, just because they take big hacks at bad pitches," said Harman, who pitched a complete game last week, holding free-swinging Auburn to five hits in a 5-2 victory.

Harman said a scouting report on Alabama matters little.

"We're going to pitch toward our strengths," he said.

But he knows about Dugas. The sophomore center fielder has 90 hits and 59 walks, and he's been hit by a pitch 11 times.

"He's got a lot of walks," Harman said. "That's one thing our entire team will try to eliminate."

Where would Alabama be without Dugas?

"Whew! Not here," Gaspard said. "Taylor is just such an intense competitor. He's our guy. I don't know a better way to put it. When we get on the bus, he's going to say the thing that's going to get us going. He's going to spark us in the dugout. He does it with his play."

Dugas and Clemson's Chris Epps played together last summer for the Thomasville (N.C.) HiToms in the wooden-bat Coastal Plains League.

"He likes to get the party started, as they say," Epps said of Dugas' skill as a leadoff hitter.

"Off the field, we bonded real well. We didn't party. We really like to focus on baseball."

Epps started the season as Clemson's center fielder and leadoff hitter, but he has been benched with a .211 batting average.

The two players have stayed in touch during the season, primarily through text messages.